Manticulex
Manticulex is a Neopteron currently unreleased in Monster Hunter, known to inhabit arid areas such as desert. They can be encountered in Low and High Rank Guild Quests, however an Apex variant can be found in a G Rank Quest. Physiology Manticulex is a large, beetle-like Neopteron with two layers of exoskeleton - one being its chitinous plating that covers most of its body, a shiny grey armor which is lined with red stripes, and its signature, symbiotic cactus growing on its limbs and some of its abdomen. It has six limbs, and its two forelegs are grossly enlarged in comparison to the rest of the limbs, and the armor plating on both the exoskeleton and the cactus are at its thickest. It primarily uses these limbs to grasp its food source - large cactus stems, but in a pinch they can be used to pound on unsuspecting hunters. Also unique (and unusual) to a Neopteron is the proboscis in place of large jaws, as the creature is herbivorous in nature and feeds off plant sap (notably cactus, by impaling its thick stem). Abilities Manticulex is largely immobile, and harnesses its powerful forelegs to crush hunters foolish enough to attack it - while slow, their deceptively huge body mass makes for staggering blows. The cacti fused onto their bodies also respond to their pheromones, and when threatened, Manticulex cacti extend their thorns to cover a larger radius on the Manticulex, and dissuade attackers. This is more pronounced on their forelegs, and is very likely to cause hunters in close range to bleed profusely. Manticulex also have an internal storage of superheated oil, which can be fired at hunters to immobilize them as with Gogmazios' Tar. More notably, when a Manticulex is severely injured, it leaks the oil from its body, instantly tarring nearby hunters and leaving an oil trail wherever it moves (in this state, it is more likely to fly). The trail explodes after a brief duration. Behavior Manticulex is an unusual example of a herbivorous large Neopteron, and feeds off large cactus stems by impaling it with its sharp proboscis - one that is too short to use as a proper weapon against aggressors. It grasps onto the stems with its powerful forelegs, and failing to puncture the stem, it will sever it completely by pummeling it repeatedly. Manticulex are largely passive creatures, but will react extremely defensively against other aggressors by drawing its cactus thorns, which are as sharp as blades. This dissuades all but Monoblos and Diablos from attacking it as the thorns can penetrate relatively thick plating from most wyverns, and it is not uncommon to see elder Manticulex with various dismembered bits of smaller wyvern such as Rathalos and Tigrex. It has a secondary defense mechanism in the rare event of a wyvern penetrating its two thick exoskeletons, where it voluntarily leaks subterranean oil unwillingly absorbed through the cacti stems attached to its body when burrowed underground. Superheated inside the Manticulex's body, the oil is primed to explode after decomposing briefly in the air. Attacks Normal State #'Double/Triple Swipe:' The Manticulex rears up on its hindlegs, and swipes at the hunter 2/3 times with its frontal claws. #'Slow Charge:' The Manticulex rears up on its hindlegs, before stomping repeatedly in a slow advance, damaging all hunters in front of it. May alter its trajectory slightly to follow hunters mid-charge. #'Thorn Flail:' The Manticulex briefly curls up into a defensive ball, extending its frontal spikes, before unleashing a volley of 4 spikes in a small arc. May cause Bleeding. #'Thorn Ball:' The Manticulex curls into a defensive ball, and slows its movement to a crawl. Its frontal leg spines protect its abdomen, and increases sharpness required to penetrate by one level (Green → Blue on LR, Blue → White on HR). Bouncing off will inflict Bleeding and low damage, and cause heavy Sharpness Loss. #'Quiver Dance:' The Manticulex shakes itself repeatedly, scattering a small flurry of spikes (or oil, when one of its limbs/abdomen is broken) in a small area around it. Being hit repeatedly may cause Bleeding, or may inflict Tarred if hit by Oil. #'Oil Bomb:' The Manticulex spits a few globules of oil towards the hunters while standing still. Being hit inflicts Tarred, and the globules explode after a short delay on the hunter, or on the ground. #'Hip Check:' The Manticulex thumps its abdomen on the ground, sitting on any hunters beneath or behind it. Enraged State When enraged, the Manticulex leaks oil from its proboscis after making a loud clicking noise to warn hunters, and its eyes light up to a glowing red. It moves faster, and attacks for more damage, and is more likely to use abilities #2, #4 and #5. In addition, it gains the following attacks: #'Thorn Ball Roll:' Similar to Thorn Ball, the Manticulex curls up, but rolls towards the Hunters with spikes extended. May scatter Oil on the ground to inflict Tarred if injured. #'Quad Swipe:' The Manticulex swipes three times at the hunter before rearing up and slamming down for a fourth, heavily damaging attack. #'Aerial Dive:' The Manticulex hovers in mid air for a brief moment, before randomly rushing the player thrice. After the third time, it crashes on the ground briefly, leaving it open for attack. #'Aerial Oil Bomb:' The Manticulex hovers in mid air for a brief moment, before spitting a few globules of oil towards the hunters. Being hit inflicts Tarred, and the globules explode after a short delay on the hunter, or on the ground. Injured State Completely independent from the Enraged State (i.e. a Manticulex can be both Enraged and Injured), when any part of the Manticulex is broken, it begins to leak Oil from the affected limbs/parts. In addition, it gains the following attacks: #'Oil Leak:' Oil gushes profusely from the Manticulex, and leaves a thin trail or pool originating from the injured part. After a delay, the Oil explodes, and if hunters walk over the Oil, they are Tarred. #'Detonation:' The Manticulex's proboscis glows with a fiery heat, and stomps hard on the ground, detonating all existing Oil Leaks for heavy Blast damage. #'Quiver Dance:' On top of spikes, it now scatters Oil to a larger area around it. Trivia * Manticulex is a portmanteau derived from the Greek mythological creature, the manticore, which is depicted as capable of firing venomous spines to incapacitate its victim, and Culex, the scientific genus reserved primarily for mosquitoes. However, this is misleading, as the Manticulex is derived from a beetle. * Attacking a Manticulex when the cactus thorns are drawn requires at least blue sharpness - anything else will not only cause your weapon to bounce, but bleed the hunter in question. * Manticulex was designed as a monster to incorporate immobility, unusual for a large monster design. However, this forces hunters to prioritize proper attack timing to avoid being bled. * Manticulex is also one of the few monsters where ranged weapons are recommended, as the monster punishes melee attackers heavily, and is highly vulnerable to Shot damage. * A single Apex Manticulex appears in a G Rank Quest, and it leaks oil from the moment the fight begins from its front and sides. Other than that, it also attacks significantly faster. * Manticulex Weapons can inflict Bleed on a Monster. For more information, please visit this page. Category:Neopteron Category:Monster Creation